The present invention is directed generally to a printable form that includes detachable cut-outs formable into a wristband, and more particularly to a wristband with one or more detents on or near at least one end thereof that permit a more secure connection between joined ends upon wristband formation.
Upon admission to a hospital, a patient typically provides pertinent background information, such as patient name, social security number, primary physician, health insurance coverage, allergies and related known health history, and the nature of the ailment, just to name a few. Prior to the advent of electronic data processing and printing equipment, such information would be manually written or typed, then transcribed to a bracelet that could be placed on a patient""s extremity, such as wrist or ankle, for ease of identification by treating hospital personnel. Errors in transcription and legibility of the printed indicia on the wristband could result in incorrect identification of vital patient information, thus compromising patient care. The availability of modern computing and printing equipment in virtually all hospitals and related health care facilities has significantly reduced the likelihood of such errors occurring, as information entered into the hospital database is automatically processed and printed directly onto a sheet-like form that includes an elongate strip that can be formed into a wristband. Simultaneously, some or all of the same information provided by the patient upon admission can be printed onto labels situated on the same form. The form is typically made from multiple plies, where the top (or face) ply capable of accepting printing thereon is adhesively bonded to a release layer (such as a conventional silicone coating) disposed on a liner ply. Cut-outs defined in the face ply permit easy removal of the elongate strip or labels from the liner ply of the form. Locations on the elongate strip (such as the ends) may have exposed pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) that can be used to establish adhesive bracelet-forming contact. Hospital personnel generally secure the bracelet to the patient so that chances for misidentification of the patient are minimized. This is especially useful when, due to the patient""s age or condition, verifying information cannot be readily ascertained by hospital personnel. An example of a form with cut-outs for labels and wristbands that can be fed into a printer to accept patient-unique information is U.S. Pat. No. 5,653,472 to Huddleston et al., owned by the assignee of the present invention and herein incorporated by reference. In one embodiment of that device, peripherally disposed adhesive permits laminated joining of the wristband, while adhesive disposed at the longitudinally spaced contact portions permits a bonded connection therebetween.
While such prior art devices offer marked improvement in patient wristband accuracy and efficiency, there are situations where the relatively simple joining scheme between the two opposing ends of the band may be torn apart, thus negating the benefit of providing such notorious indicia. For example, if the patient is disoriented, or is operating under a defect of reason, he or she might become inclined to remove the wristband. Similarly, an inquisitive child can pick at the connection, causing it to come undone. In either event, if the wristband becomes separated from the patient, hospital personnel must perform time-consuming independent verification of the identity and medical needs of the patient prior to treatment to avoid potentially catastrophic consequences. One way to discourage wristband removal is to use a separate single-use clip, typically made from a metal or durable plastic, to keep the wristband in place. Such an approach is disadvantageous in that it requires separate storage and retrieval of both the wristband and the clip, and in some instances, the use of a special tool to crimp the clip to the wristband. This inconvenience to hospital personnel can lead to the consumption of extra time and money. Other methods can include the use of transparent plastic coverings that can be folded over onto the printed surface to improve water and tear-resistance. However, these too can add significant cost and complexity to the wristband.
Accordingly, there is a need for a wristband that can be easily formed from a sheet that is amenable to automated printing, and that upon wristband formation exhibits enhanced resistance to destruction and subsequent removal. There exists an additional need for such a wristband that does not sacrifice low cost, printability and ease of use to achieve these improved structural properties.
These needs are met by the present invention, which is directed to a wristband formed from a printer-compatible sheet. The sheet can come in either cut-sheet size, for individual or stacked feeding into a conventional printer tray, or in a continuous web, such as a Z-fold configuration, or in roll form which can be fed directly into a variety of printers, including mechanical impact, direct thermal, thermal transfer, ink jet, and laser printers. Multiple elongate strips can be placed on a single sheet. In the alternative, one or more labels, preferably as an array, can be similarly placed on the same surface of the sheet as the elongate strips, such that duplicate or related patient information can be printed onto the label array. The sheet is made up of at least a face ply adhesively joined to a liner ply, the latter of which can include a release coating placed on at least a part of the surface joining the face ply. Both the elongate strip and the labels can be die cut for ease of removal upon printing. The elongate strips have one or more detents (alternately referred to as wings) that extend from the strip such that the wings can be folded over to secure opposing strip contact portions once the strip is formed into a wristband, thus enhancing the durability of the connection.
According to one aspect of the present invention, an elongate strip configured to form a wristband is disclosed. The elongate strip includes a body portion defined by an inner surface and an outer surface, at least the latter of which is configured to accept printing (such as from a conventional automated printer, handwriting or other printing method) thereon, a pair of longitudinally spaced contact portions, each extending from the body portion such that they can be brought together to permit the strip to be shaped like a ring or bracelet, at least one laterally projecting detent (or wing) extending from at least one of the contact portions, and an adhesive layer disposed on at least one of the contact portions and the detent. The lateral edges define opposing side portions of the elongate strip, and extend substantially from one end of the strip to the other. As used in conjunction with the present disclosure, the term xe2x80x9csubstantiallyxe2x80x9d refers to an arrangement of elements or features that, while in theory would be expected to exhibit exact correspondence or behavior, may, in practice embody something slightly less than exact. The one or more detents extend from the longitudinally spaced contact portions and include an inner surface and an outer surface. The adhesive on the longitudinally spaced contact portions is such that upon formation of the elongate strip into the wristband through looped contact of adjacent surfaces, a permanent bond is formed. Similarly, the adhesive layer disposed on the detent forms a permanent bond between the detent surface and whatever part of the wristband it comes in contact with, further strengthening the connection. In the present context, a contact portion need not be situated at the immediate end of the strip, and accordingly may include any portion of the adjacent strip structure that is configured to engage one or more surfaces of the opposing strip end or contact surface. As such, the contact portion may be disposed longitudinally inward from the end of the strip by such a distance as required to form a wristband of a size appropriate to the intended wearer. Accordingly, depending on the size of the strip and the nature of the engagement (i.e., whether a simple end-to-end contact or overlap, or a multilayer folded-back connection), the contact portion could extend longitudinally inward up to a significant part of the length between the immediate end surface and the strip midpoint. In the present context, the term xe2x80x9coverxe2x80x9d can include both direct adhesive contact between the detent and the connection (in the case of a single detent at each contact portion), as well as indirect contact with the connection through another detent (in the case of a detent set or pair disposed laterally across from one another at each contact portion).
Optionally, the adhesive layer disposed on the detent can be contiguous with the adhesive layer disposed on the contact portion from which the detent extends. Moreover, the detent is preferably integral with the elongate strip, such that both are made from a single piece of material. In addition, the detent can be part of a set of laterally projecting detents that can cooperate together to further secure the wristband. One or both of the detent sets (as well as an individual detent) can further be disposed longitudinally inward of the contact portion distal edge such that a tab is defined as extending longitudinally beyond the intersection formed between the longitudinal dimension of the elongate strip and the laterally projecting detent. The portion of the elongate strip inner surface that corresponds to the body portion can be free from adhesive to inhibit sticking between at least a portion of the inner surface and an adjacent surface, such as a wearer""s wrist.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a self-adhesive wristband is disclosed. The wristband is formed from an elongate strip and at least one laterally projecting detent integrally formed with the elongate strip. The elongate strip includes a body portion, longitudinally spaced contact portions, an outer surface on the body portion upon which wearer-unique unique indicia may be printed, an inner surface opposite the outer surface, and an adhesive layer disposed on at least a portion of the body such that upon formation of the elongate strip into the wristband, the adhesive layer forms a first bond. The detent includes an adhesive and is configured such that once the first bond is made, the detent can be folded over an adjacent surface of at least one of the elongate strips to form an additional bond. Thus, when the longitudinally spaced contact portions are brought into looped contact with one another to establish adhesive contact between their respective adjacent surfaces, and subsequent connection is made between the adhesive layer disposed on the surface of the detent and at least one adjacent surface on the elongate strip, the wristband is further secured. Optionally, the detent is disposed adjacent at least one of the longitudinally spaced contact portions such that the formation of the adhesive bond is between the detent on the one longitudinally spaced contact portion and an opposing longitudinally spaced contact portion. In addition, the adhesive may be configured such that one or more of the adhesive bonds are permanent.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a form is disclosed. The form includes a face ply with at least one elongate strip defined therein, a liner ply disposed against the face ply, an adhesive disposed between at least a portion of the face and liner plies, and a release coating disposed between at least a portion of the face and liner plies to facilitate removable adhesion therebetween. The elongate strip is defined by a body portion and a pair of longitudinally spaced contact portions. As with the previous embodiments, the elongate strip includes an outer surface configured to receive printed indicia thereon and an inner surface opposite the outer surface. The elongate strip also includes at least one laterally projecting detent. At least a portion of the inner surface includes an adhesive layer such that upon connection of the pair of longitudinally spaced contact portions, at least a portion of the adhesive layer forms a bond therebetween. The detent is configured to adhesively fold onto the connection to form a bond therewith. The liner ply includes an inner surface, at least a portion of which is disposed such that it faces the inner surface of the elongate strip inner surface, and an outer surface. Optionally, the form is part of a continuous stack, which can be, for example, a Z-fold stack. The form could also be part of a continuous roll, or an individual cut sheet adapted to fit within a printer tray. Preferably, the form is configured to pass through a laser printer such that printed indicia may be placed on the printable outer surface of the elongate strip. The form may also include a plurality of labels disposed in the face ply, where the material of the elongate strip may be different than that of the labels.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, a form is disclosed. The form includes a face ply, liner ply, adhesive and release coating, where the face ply further comprises two portions, the first for one or more elongate strips formable into wristbands, and the second for one or more labels. The elongate strips are similar in construction to those of the previous embodiment, and as with the previous embodiment, may be made of a different material than the plurality of labels. The labels defined in the second portion of the face ply include an outer surface configured to receive printed indicia and an inner surface opposite the outer surface. The inner surface includes an adhesive layer to facilitate adhesive contact between the label and an object to be labelled. The liner ply is disposed against the face ply and includes an outer surface and an inner surface, at least a portion of which is disposed adjacent the elongate strip and label inner surfaces. The adhesive is disposed between at least a portion of the face and liner plies, as is the release coating. As with the previous embodiment, the form can be part of a continuous stack or roll, or could be an individual cut sheet. In practice, the plies of the form of the present invention are preferably assembled and then the face ply is printed in a single pass through a printer with the desired variable and nonvariable information. The elongate strip may then be detached from the form by peeling it from the liner ply and wrapping the band around a wearer""s wrist to form a wristband. The wristband can then be secured at more than one location by means of the PSA on the longitudinally spaced contact portions and the one or more laterally projecting detents. The labels which remain on the form may be removed as needed and adhered to various surfaces. In the case of hospital use, these labels may be adhered to hospital forms, medicine containers, patient specimens or the like.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a method of making an adhesive strip to be used in the formation of a winged wristband is disclosed. The method includes adhesively combining at least a portion of a face ply to at least a portion of a liner ply to make a form, and defining in the face ply an elongate strip with longitudinally spaced contact portions. The elongate strip includes a first adhesive layer disposed on at least one of the contact portions and a second adhesive layer disposed on the detent. The ring-like structure of the wristband is formed with the first adhesive layer, while folding the detent over at least a portion of the elongate strip forms an additional adhesive bond to further reinforce the wristband. Optionally, the step of defining in the face ply an elongate strip includes providing a cut-out around a substantial entirety of the periphery of the elongate strip. This could include, by way of example, die cuts or perforations to facilitate peeling separation between the elongate strip and the liner ply, and between the elongate strip and extra material in the face ply. In addition, the first and second adhesive layers can be contiguously disposed. Such configuration could exist, for example, where the detent and one of the contact portions are adjacent one another. Another optional step could include feeding the form into a laser printer and printing indicia on at least the elongate strip.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a method of using a winged wristband is disclosed. The method includes configuring an elongate strip to include a body portion and a pair of longitudinally spaced contact portions, placing the elongate strip around a wearer""s wrist, looping the elongate strip into a wristband shape, adhesively securing the longitudinally spaced contact portions to one another and folding at least one laterally projecting detent that is part of the elongate strip over a portion of the elongate strip such that the adhesive layer disposed on the detent forms a bond where the detent and strip contact one another. Optionally, the method comprises the additional step of printing indicia on the printable outer surface of the elongate strip prior to the step of placing the elongate strip adjacent a wearer""s wrist. Preferably, the form containing the elongate strip is configured to be fed into a laser printer. Another option includes, prior to the step of folding the detent over a portion of the elongate strip, doubling back at least one of the longitudinally spaced contact portions so that the detent is adjacent the portion of the elongate strip that the detent is to be folded over.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, a method of using a wristband is disclosed. The method includes the steps of configuring an elongate strip to include the parts described in the previous aspect, placing the elongate strip adjacent a wearer""s wrist, looping the elongate strip into a wristband shape such that a first adhesive bond is formed between a connection of the longitudinally spaced contact portions, doubling back the portions of elongate strip that are longitudinally distal of the contact point formed by the first adhesive bond along the outer surface of the body such that adhesive disposed adjacent a distal edge of one of the portions of the elongate strip forms a second adhesive bond with the outer surface of the body formed into the wristband shape, and folding the detent over the doubled back portion of the strip such that the adhesive layer disposed on the detent forms a third adhesive bond.
Other advantages and aspects of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following description of the drawings in conjunction with the detailed description of the invention.